About

Computers

Before computers there were not telephone answering machines, handheld calculators, fax machines, personal computers. People did what they had to do without these things. People wrote letter by hand or with a typewriter, they also kept track of data and numbers in ledgers. They were not texting each other, there was either in person or over the phone. . Computers are integral to our daily lives and there are millions used daily. Computers are used at home, work, and school. They are also embedded into cars, phones, and cameras. Computers have many uses such as; word processing, internet, online banking, online classes, GPS systems, ATM machines, mobile phones, weather prediction. Computers go back all to the 1900’s, in 1939 the Hewlett-Packard. Hewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California. The company originated in a garage in nearby Palo Alto during a fellowship they had with a past professor during great depression. Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer increased computing speed by 1,000x and they were the first electronic general purpose computer, it was heralded in the press as a “Giant Brain”. ENIAC was financed by the United States Army during World War II. Commodore Business Machines are U.S. based computer and electronics manufacturer with headquarters in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Commodore played a vital role in the development of the home-personal computer. Xerox opens Palo Alto Research Center in 1970.Steve Wozniak designed the Apple I in 1976. IBM introduced the PC in 1981. Some more history of computers from 1990-2009 in order: HTML developed; World Wide Web, Netscape and Yahoo, Microsoft releases Windows 95, YouTube; Windows Vista announced, Amazon releases he Kindle; Google releases Android, Microsoft releases Windows 7. A computer is a device that performs the information-processing cycle which consist of four basic operations which are...

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...A computer is not an acronym and is sometimes abbreviated as comp or 'puter. The term "computer" was originally given to humans who performed numerical calculations using mechanical calculators such as the abacus and slide rule. The term was later given to a mechanical device as they began replacing the human computers. Today's computers are electronic devices that accept data (input), process that data, produces output, and then store (storage) the results.
The first computer was called the ENIAC, which was built during World War II (1943-1946). These early computers used vacuum tubes and were very large (sometimes room size) and only found in businesses, Universities, or governments. Later, computers began utilizing transistors as well as smaller and cheaper parts that allowed the common person to own their own computer. This history of computers and related topics can be found on our history page.
Today, computers help make jobs that used to be complicated much simpler. For example, a user can write letters in a word processor and edit any portion of the letter anytime, spell check the letter, and move text from another document into the letter, etc. This is just one of the millions of different things a computer is capable of doing.
What components make a computer?
Today's...

...
Coordinated by
Dept of Computer Science,
University of Jaffna.
Table of Contents
Computer Fundamentals
Introduction to Computers
A computer is a man-made, programmable electronic machine that can store, retrieve, and process data according to a given set of instructions. Whatever information given to a computer is termed input. The computer input typically comprises of two things: Data and Instructions. The data are the facts, which are to be processed, and the instructions describe how the computer should process the data. The data which has been converted or organized into a more useful or intelligible form for direct utilization or helps human beings in their decision making process is typically termed information.
The heart of the computer is a microprocessor chip. Today microprocessors are embedded inside various every-day machines such as cars, television sets and washing machines. These microprocessors usually control some function of the machine and are hidden from the user. The term computer can virtually be applied to any such device that has a microprocessor in it. However most people describe a computer as a device that comprises of a keyboard, mouse, a central processing device and a screen.
Characteristics of Computers
Speed
A computer can perform tasks very fast.
The amount of work...

...History of Computers
Table of Contents
Table of Contents . .2
Abstract . 3
Body of Research .4 - 6
Conclusion . 7
Bibliography ..8
Abstract
This project explains the history of computers, starting from Howard Aiken's Harvard Mark I to present day time. Although I have not gone over all of the models in my report, I have chosen those which I feel have had the greatest effect on the computer world. I will show how in just forty years, computers have come from complex, slow, room-sized machines, to the small and fast computers of today. These powerful machines are the art of many great men and women, which I will also briefly explain in the project. This project is to show others how these machines, that run many aspects of our life, have come from.
Body of Research
Computers are one of man-kinds largest achievements. In just forty years, computers have come from room-sized machines, that compute slowly and store little data, to machines that fit in your pocket, that store great amounts of data and process very quickly.
The computer that is credited with making the first complete digital operation is Howard Aiken's Harvard Mark I (created in 1937), which was made up of 78 adding machines and calculators.
Although Howard's model was automatic, it was controlled by instructions punched into a roll of...

...Computer Organization & Architecture Lecture #12 Organization and Architecture Computer Architecture Those attributes of the system that are visible to a programmer. Those attributes that have a direct impact on the execution of a program. • • • • Instruction sets Data representation – number of bits used to represent data Input/Output mechanisms Memory addressing techniques
Computer Organization The operational units and their interconnections that realize the architectural specifications. Those hardware attributes that are transparent to the programmer. • Control signals • Interfaces between the computer and peripherals • Memory technology Structure and Function A computer is a complex system; contemporary computers contain millions of electronic components. How, then, can one clearly describe a computer? The key is to recognize the hierarchical nature of most complex systems. A hierarchical system is a set of interrelated subsystems where each subsystem is a hierarchical structure. At each level, the system consists of a set of components and their interrelationships. At each level, a designer is concerned with structure and function: Structure – the way in which components relate to each other. Function – the operation of individual components as part of the structure.
Function The four basic functions of a computer are: • • • • Processing data Storing...

...MAIN COMPONENTS OF PERSONAL COMPUTER
INTRODUCTION:
IN 21st century our life is run without computer. We must need the help of computer every day of our life. Computer are indispensable to wok home, management and entertainment in modern life. The project work shows what are the main components to run a computer. Personal computer have lots of components the main components are keyboard,mouse,ram,dvd drive, hard disk, video card, mother board, processor, disk controller,floppy disk drive,video display adopter,modem,printer,cpu(central proceesing unit) computer case.and the optional equipemenns are tap back up devices,cd -rom drives,digital camera,audio adopters,removal drives the above components are main hardware components of the computer.the software components of the personal computer are operating system,Microsoft windows,linux,amigaos,os x.
Mother board:
Mother is a heart of the computer and its also reffered as system board or main board.all the components of the computer connect direct or indirect to the mother board.it is a main circuit board inside the machine without mother board anything is run in computer.it contain some non-volaitle memory to intilaze the systemand load the operating system in peripheral devices.most of the mother board design bios,EEPROM CHIP...

...Parts of the Computer & Their Functions
Computers are assembled from several key components that make the computer functional, called hardware. While most computer users are primarily familiar with the monitor, keyboard, mouse, and other peripherals, the most important physical parts of a computer exist inside the case.
CPU
* The central processing unit processes all of the data that is accessed by the machine. In PCs the CPU, or microprocessor, is a small silicon chip located beneath the fan. Essentially, the purpose of a CPU is to process instructions through a four-part sequence of fetching, decoding, execution and write back.
RAM
* Random access memory, also known as main memory, provides a buffer between the hard drive and central processing unit. When files are requested for processing, they get transferred from the hard drive to the memory. The CPU then processes the file and replaces it in the memory.
The RAM provides a temporary storage that gets erased when power is removed from the machine. It is important to save modified files to the hard drive so that they get saved if power is lost.
Hard Drive
* A hard drive provides permanent storage for the operating system, programs and files on a machine. When files are saved to the hard drive, they are retained through power outages. Traditional hard drives are composed of magnetic platters that spin when in use. Solid state...

...Random Access Memory – RAM. Where information is stored
temporarily when a program is run. Information is automatically
pulled into memory, we cannot control this. RAM is cleared
automatically when the computer is shutdown or rebooted. RAM is
volatile (non-permanent).
b. Read Only Memory – ROM. More permanent than RAM. Data
stored in these chips is nonvolatile -- it is not lost when power is
removed. Data stored in these chips is either unchangeable or requires
a special operation to change. The BIOS is stored in the CMOS, readonly
memory.
c. Hard Drive – Where you store information permanently most
frequently. This is also nonvolatile.
4. Motherboard – A circuit board that allows the CPU to interact with other
parts of the computer.
5. Ports – Means of connecting peripheral devices to your computer.
a. Serial Port – Often used to connect a older mice, older external
modems, older digital cameras, etc to the computer. The serial port
has been replaced by USB in most cases. 9-pin connector. Small and
short, often gray in color. Transmits data at 19 Kb/s.
b. Monitor Ports – Used to connect a monitor to the computer.
PCs usually use a VGA (Video Graphics Array) analog connector (also
known as a D-Sub connector) that has 15 pins in three rows. Typically
blue in color.
Because a VGA (analog) connector does not support the use of digital
monitors, the Digital Video Interface (DVI)...